Weekly Discovery: ATM

As an artist, growth, or defining creative vision and working towards its execution, over time is often shown through the progression of one’s catalog of music. One artist that has shown this development with a keen eye for what works and what doesn’t is New Jersey’s own, ATM. His track record of 13 tracks on SoundCloud right now proves a path of unrivaled authenticity and a clear creative vision, as every song seems to work on the strengths of the last while striving for the improvements of the next offering.

This trait has led me to find sky-high potential in a number of his songs such as “Vashtie“, “Rush“, and “Lupin The 3rd“, and today, Graduation Music is proud to present an interview we conducted with the young talent, marking the fourth installment of our weekly discovery series. Read the conversation covering his origins as an artist, his work with Cor Blanco, his inspiration, and more, below.

How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard your music?

Uh, I would say my music is tight. I have different mood music, so like I make music for everyone. Happy people, sad people, every kinda person.

When did you start making music in the first place? How did all of this come about and how do you feel about how the fans have reacted / how far you have come?

I started like a year and a half ago. I was chilling with Cor [Blanco] one day on sum random shit & he was finishing up his tape & I was like yo bro let me get on a song, so I tried this shit, and I liked it. When I made the song “Friends” that shit really hit. My whole county was fucking with it. Idk if I still have those day one-supporting niggas but I haven’t made the noise that I wanted yet, still pushing.

What’s the rap scene like in New Jersey right now? Is there a lot of influence from New York?

Idk I try to focus on myself and my friends, to be honest. And nah, not really, I don’t think so. I listen to every kinda of music so that’s where my influences come from.

On the production side of things, Cor Blanco is one of your most frequent collaborators. How did you two meet and how did you start making music together?

Yea that’s my bro 4 lyfe, we went to high school together. I mean we wasn’t always as close as we are now, but the music brought us close as fuck. He’s the first person I ever made music with and we just stuck with it.

When working on new music, where do you usually find inspiration from? Describe your creative process.

My favorite artists are Tyler the Creator, Pharrell, Playboi Carti & Kali Uchis. So like idk, I mix all those into 1 haha, or at least I try to. To be honest, I just listen to beats from Cor and if I feel it, I feel it. I usually don’t write any of my songs. I catch writer’s block & shit, so freestyling is the way for me.

Lastly, what can fans expect from ATM in the near future?

Bruh, these niggas are in for a treat, dude. Sick videos, sad ass music, you know – different shit. Shit they’d want from me. I’m never gonna shy away from my style.